Things in which to rejoice....thoughts on Ephesians 1

I am not the best at keeping resolutions. I'm not talking about New Year's resolutions (since that is apparently just around the corner and I refuse to make them because to me they are a fad, a conforming, or maybe I just don't like them or January), but rather the things I resolve within myself that I am going to do daily. "I am going to get up extra early even when I don't have to in order to clean the house." "I am going to the gym twice today." "I am going to the gym today period." You know, things like that. I am telling you this to accomplish a few things I guess. One, I am establishing a connection with you. You now know a little something more about me or this is the only thing you know about me (which is actually a fear because I desire to be known for greatness though I might have none). Two, I meant to update this blog regularly when I started it back in 2006...."I will start this blog and I will blog all the time and I will become one of those people who is a consistent blogger." Wrong. Also, I meant to post this particular blog nearly a month ago. I was sitting at home alone, reading through Ephesians 1 and had some interesting thoughts about it (at least in my somewhat-biased opinion). And then I thought, I should share this, put this all out there for people to read, discover, pick apart, agree with, disagree with, wrestle with....whatever have you. Thus, I ask for your apology...those of you who planned on doing such things and couldn't because I am horrible at keeping my resolutions.

I use the New King James Translation most of the time. Occasionally I consult other translations (ESV, NASB, and rarely NIV) in order to better understand something or to look at it from a different angle. However, with Ephesians 1 and this particular post (and all others I'd imagine as well) I will refer to the NKJV. Do you want to know why? I mean, if I was reading this and I didn't know me, I might ask that question. Well, it's accurate, fairly to the left when it comes to its degree of literal translation from the original text, and it's poetic and beautiful to me. Some days the words seem as if they were written to specifically speak to my mind and heart in a way that is deep, intimate, and full of impact. Have I rambled enough for you?

Ephesians 1
*In verse 3 Paul reminds the believers in Ephesus that in Christ they have been blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places. How encouraging! Not some, or most, but every spiritual blessing. I know at times I focus so much on what God has yet to give me or mature in me. Reading this is a reminder that we've been given His Son, and in Him is every spiritual blessing. And not just every spiritual blessing we can think of or ask for or want....but every spiritual blessing.

*Verse 4: He (God) chose us (His children) in Him (Jesus). I think the important part here is not so much to get wrapped up in free will and predestination, but rather that Paul says here that we are chosen, and it only occurs in Christ Jesus. To me, this magnifies the importance and the necessity of putting Christ at the center of not only our lives, but of Christianity. The outside world looking in at Christians sees too much of me and you and our own selfish agendas and not enough of Jesus...He's who everything, and I mean everything, is about anyway. How can we call ourselves Christians, little Christs, if we make our "following of Jesus" all about us, our church, our music, and full coffee bar service. We were chosen and it was done in Jesus.

*Verse 5: Similar to v. 4, it speaks of how "He predestined us to adoption as sons." And again, let's not allow the word "predestined" to dominate the idea of this verse, but rather adoption. Adoption, to me, means that we were once orphaned, without our Father, without a home. Now though, we have been grafted in to the kingdom of God as sons. And Paul isn't being sexist by only saying "sons" and I don't think that it's our job to add "daughters" so that we feel better about how politically correct we can be. He said sons for a reason. In Paul's culture, daughters did not receive the family inheritance, only the sons did. We want to be considered sons in this way because God has made us His sons, co-heirs with Jesus (His Son) in His inheritance. This predestining and adoption is said to be done "according to the good pleasure of His will." This phrase means so much to me because I fall into this lie that I have to figure out God's will. That it is some mystery for me to solve or a code for me to crack. Most of the time, we just need to focus on the things we know are in God's will for us: to know Him, to worship Him, etc. He has revealed His will to us already in His Word.

*Verse 6: Our adoption was to the praise of the glory of His grace. His grace is so glorious and we get to be a testimony to that.

*Verses 7 and 8: His grace, which we see in v. 6 is glorious and is worthy of praise, abounds toward us. Paul doesn't just mention that God's grace abounds, but he reminds us that God's grace has a direction in which it abounds and that direction is those who have been chosen in Him.

*Verse 9: "...having made known to us the mystery of His will." This echoes the end of v. 5. God has revealed His will to us--Jesus, the Messiah. Prophet after prophet, patriarch after patriarch waited to see God's redemptive plan, His will. And we have Him. He has lived, died, rose again, and we know Him. Salvation is in Jesus. He has been revealed--the mystery of God's fullness walked among us. We get so stuck on knowing God's will for this or that. I'm not saying that we shouldn't diligently seek God in humility concerning every jot and tittle of our lives, because I think we should be doing that. Only we mustn't forget that the mystery of God's will has been revealed to us!
*A little side note concerning this further. God's will for our lives is His Son Jesus. To receive Him as the Lord of our lives, acknowledge Him as Savior by accepting His substitutionary death on the cross for our sins, repenting (turning away from our sins and back to God), walking with God, talking with Him, becoming more like Him, being in an intimate relationship with Him...that is God's will. (Please don't take what I say to extremes or read into this by assuming that because Jesus is God's will for our lives that everyone is saved...I am not saying that.) All of that to say that if you follow Jesus, submitting to Him in your life, walking in His Spirit...can you follow Jesus, even if you don't always know where you are going specifically in life, and end up where He isn't or doesn't want you to be? I think we should focus more on Christ and less on our situations. Cast them at His feet and then jump to your feet to follow Him.

*Verse 9 reminds us that He revealed Himself to us (remember that this is individually and corporately as part of Christ's Bride) according to His good pleasure. It has pleased God, it pleases Him now, and it will continue to please Him to reveal Himself to His creation.

*Verse 13: "In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation." I think this is a great reminder to us that it was upon hearing the truth, the good news of salvation in Jesus that we trusted in Him. Regardless of your personal experience, this is what I believe Paul is saying occurred. You didn't figure things out, weigh options, have it all make sense. You heard the truth and you only truly heard it because you are chosen and then you put your trust in Jesus because it pleased Him to choose you and make you able. (Romans 3 reminds us that no one is righteous and no one seeks God.)

*Verses 13-14: We were sealed by the Holy Spirit, whom we (and by we I mean I do and I just think that other people somewhere might do it as well...and I have heard evidence of this thinking by the way some people have spoken about how the Spirit works in their lives) often treat as the "conviction burden" or the One who ruins the fleeting fun of our sin because He reminds us of what we are called to. Sure, He is our conviction and our Helper, but that's because He is a promise. His promptings and work in our lives remind us of Christ's promise to come back for us someday. He offers so much hope because He is the guarantee for us that we have an inheritance, that we are chosen by God. We shouldn't quench Him or be burdened by Him--since when are the promises of God burdensome?!? In Him we have love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control.

*Verses 17-23: God has made available to us and is willing to give us: a spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, enlightening the eyes of our understanding; the hope of His calling; the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints; the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power, which is the same He worked in Christ to raise Him from the dead and seat Him at His right hand--His resurrection power is toward us (The power that took Jesus, who had been scourged, beaten, crucified, and speared to death, and put life back in Him. The power that put Him above all principality and power and might and dominion and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come.);all things are under His feet (This refers to His authority over all in the world, and Since we are His Body, they are under us as well, but only in Him.) and He is head (authority, source of life, sustenance) over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all. (We are the fullness of Christ, who is the fullness of God.)

I just wanted to throw some thoughts out there concerning this chapter of Scripture. I by no means have this all figured out. I pray God lifts up your head to Him and that you, in some way, grow closer to Him by rejoicing in these things.

Thinking only of Jesus

I recently read this story in a book I've been trying to bring to an end so that I can return it to the public library on time. It really touched my heart and reminded me that being a Christian doesn't mean you'll be like everyone else. And even thinking only of Jesus may set you apart from others who follow Him. I think you'll understand what I mean if you just read on...

An Empty Shell

Philip wasn't like the other children at church. Though he was a pleasant, happy boy, he struggled with things that came easily to other kids. He looked different, too, and everyone knew it was because he had Down syndrome. His Sunday school teacher worked hard to get the third grade class to play together, but Philip's disability made it difficult for him to fit in.

Easter was just around the corner, and the teacher had a wonderful idea for his class. He gathered the big plastic eggs that pantyhose used to come in and gave one to each child. Then, together, they went outside into a beautiful spring day.

"I want each of you to find something that reminds you of Easter--of new life," the teacher explained. "Put it in the egg, and when we get inside we'll share what we found."

The search was glorious. It was confusing. It was wild. The boys and girls ran all over the church grounds gathering their symbols until finally, breathlessly, the eight-year-olds were ready to return inside. They put their eggs on the table, then one by one the teacher began to open them. The children stood around the table watching.

He opened one, and there was a flower. Everybody oohed and aahed.
He opened another and found a butterfly. "Beautiful," the girls all said.
He opened another and out fell a rock. The kids laughed. "A rock?" But the boy who'd found it said, "I knew you would all get flowers and leaves and stuff, so I got a rock cause I wanted to be different. That's new life to me." The kids laughed again.

But when the teacher opened the next egg, the group fell silent. "There's nothing there!" said one child. "That's stupid," said another. "Somebody didn't do it right."

Just then the teacher felt a tug on his shirt and turned to see Philip standing him. "It's mine," Phillip said. "It's mine."

The children said, "You don't ever do things right, Philip. There's nothing there!"

"I did so," Philip said. "I did do it right. It's empty. The tomb is empty!"

There was another silence. A very deep, unlike-eight-year-olds kind of silence. And at that moment a miracle happened. Philip became a part of that third-grade Sunday school class. They took him in. He was set free from the tomb of his differentness. From then on, Philip was their friend.

Three months later, Philip died. His family had known since the time he was born that he wouldn't live out a full life span. An infection that most children would have quickly shrugged off took the life out of his body.

The day of the funeral, the church was filled with people mourning Philip's death. But it was the sight of nine third graders walking down the aisle with their Sunday school teacher that brought tears to most eyes

The children didn't bring flowers. Instead, they marched right up to the altar, and placed on it an empty egg--an empty, old, discarded pantyhose egg.